Kinross Gold (NYSE:KGC) Trading 4.9% Higher – Time to Buy?

Kinross Gold Co. (NYSE:KGC) (TSE:K) shares were up 4.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $13.70 and last traded at $13.66. Approximately 6,241,710 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 21,666,090 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.02.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on KGC. National Bank Financial raised Kinross Gold to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. CIBC lifted their target price on shares of Kinross Gold from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of Kinross Gold from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Stifel Canada raised Kinross Gold to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Kinross Gold from $12.00 to $15.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $12.30.

Kinross Gold Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $17.07 billion, a PE ratio of 18.00, a PEG ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The business has a 50-day moving average of $11.73 and a 200 day moving average of $10.59.

Kinross Gold (NYSE:KGC) (TSE:K) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The mining company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.03). Kinross Gold had a return on equity of 12.65% and a net margin of 18.43%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Kinross Gold Co. will post 0.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kinross Gold Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $0.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.86%. Kinross Gold’s payout ratio is presently 15.58%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kinross Gold

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of Kinross Gold by 62.2% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 116,323,261 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $1,078,330,000 after acquiring an additional 44,610,091 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Kinross Gold in the fourth quarter worth approximately $280,697,000. Man Group plc grew its stake in Kinross Gold by 174.2% in the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 9,243,267 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $85,685,000 after acquiring an additional 5,871,904 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its position in Kinross Gold by 80.9% during the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 12,610,383 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $116,898,000 after purchasing an additional 5,639,383 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kinross Gold by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 32,862,230 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $304,633,000 after purchasing an additional 3,224,455 shares in the last quarter. 63.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Kinross Gold

Kinross Gold Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of gold properties principally in the United States, Brazil, Chile, Canada, and Mauritania. The company operates the Fort Knox mine and the Manh Choh project in Alaska, as well as the Round Mountain and the Bald Mountain mines in Nevada, the United States; the Paracatu mine in Brazil; the La Coipa and the Lobo-Marte project in Chile; the Tasiast mine in Mauritania; and the Great Bear project in Canada.